OZ the Great and Powerful: Wasn’t Nearly As Great and Powerfully Dark

"For when you do believe anything is possible"
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Let’s get one thing straight, Disney’s Oz the Great and Powerful comes no where near the 1939 classic we know and love as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s Wizard of Oz movie. Both movies are based on the Oz book series by author L. Frank Baum yet Disney definitely tried to make the prequel their own with some similarities that was more as a thoughtful gesture, a nod if you will, to the 1939 movie.

 Starting off in the world of black and white colored Kansas James Franco is introduced as Oz and comes off as a womanizer and arrogant circus magician who treats his assistant Frank (Zach Braff) rather poorly. His only sign of good intentions in the beginning is his ability to let the love of his life Annie move on because he knows he is not a good man, but strives to be a great one even without Annie by his side. Put in a rather sticky situation he escapes in a hot air balloon and is lifted up and into a tornado where he is nearly impaled by flying objects and finally we see the shift into the overly saturated world of Oz. It reminded me of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland and I was surprised Tim Burton wasn’t apart of this film to begin with.

            Tim Burton is known for his heavy dark themes in his seemingly young adult movies and director Sam Raimi definitely took Burton’s influence into post-production. The graphics were simply amazing and proved how remarkable our technology has come from our first crack at the wonderful land of Oz on film over 70 years ago. You still see some wonderful touches of sound effects, music, ADR, etc. to really make this movie come alive in the way that it does. The acting was to me over the top but I expected it from Disney and it went along with the overly saturated and odd world that is the Land of Oz.

However, I was surprised how dark it was and fully loaded with heavy material this movie was for a Disney film. As much as they try to cover it up with themes of personal faith and good deeds, I personally did not like some of the material and found it out of character for a Disney movie to show such violence and terror and certain gender stereotypes. Such as Oz’s womanizing and greed that leads his to make his decisions along with Theodora’s (Mila Kunis) stage five-clinger status that makes women seem desperate for a man and ultimately leads to a horrific change in her life over a guy.

           

Oz also doesn’t have his remarkable change in himself until the end but there is no significant rhyme or reason why he chooses to become good. For example, throughout his journey he gathers his companions along the yellow brick road (just as Dorothy) and uses some form of ‘magic’ from his life in Kansas to help them along the way and there are certain moments you can tell he has a heart under all that arrogance. But the audience is always reminded how he does not believe he is the wizard from the prophecy and he’s only doing this for the gold and doesn’t seem to want to help the innocent folks of Oz at all. For the most part it just seems James Franco is in the middle of a huge catfight between Theodora, her sister Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams) who’s father once ruled Oz and their fights over love, power and justice.

             

Safe Haven: Not A Typical Valentine’s Day Movie

 

"There's no safer place for you then here with me"
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Safe Haven was definitely not something I was expecting, especially coming from a Nicholas Spark’s novel adaptation, directed by Lasse Hallstrom.  The romance between the two main characters Katie, a young woman with a haunting secret played by Julianne Hough (Rock of Ages) and Alex, recent widower played by Josh Duhamel were obvious but the director and screenwriters, Leslie Bohem and Dana Stevens threw in some unexpected twists that had my jaw drop. I give this movie a seven out of ten.

          

       The one thing that seemed predictable for me was editing style. Every time something happened to Katie in her new life, especially uplifting and good there will be an automatic jump to her haunting nightmares or something happening at the police station that brought this particular detective one step closer to finding her. This detective Tierney (David Lyons) just seems very invested in Kate because she is wanted for murder but there is so much under the surface that I didn’t even pick up on it or it’s deep details until the second half of the film. It was only when I did pick up on the twist that everything in the movie dramatically changed and the last twenty minutes of the movie are gripping, chaotic and had me holding my breath. As much as the editing seemed predictable to me at first when Kate’s storyline and Tierney’s storyline seems to be drawing closer and closer to each other there is a monumental moment where this particular nightmare unfolds and by that point we know both from the back and forth from each story line to make this ultimate nightmare to make sense and collaborate the film together and make me go, “Oh God. This is going to get really good.” And it certainly did.

Incidentally I ended up enjoying the movie more then when I first walked into the theatre. The storyline altering twist near the second half turned my mind away from editing and I became fully engrossed in the film and the action between characters. Besides that there were certain moments I enjoyed, the interaction with Alex’s children: Lexie and Josh (played by Mimi Kirkland and Noah Lomax) and Katie, especially with Kate’s first arrival into town. The way Alex and Kate’s flirting slowly but surly built up (I mean he does play a grieving widower in the movie) was nicely done and it was a whole fifty-two minutes into the movie before they shared their first intimate moment. The relationships of each character and character development was crafted well and I enjoyed watching Kate grow more trusting and become more open, since when we first see her she is just a woman on the run. Especially, with her only female adult friend Jo (played by Cobie Smulders) who plays a subtle yet ultimately significant part in the movie.

Lasse Hallstrom did a marvelous job with character development and each one had their growth in the own way and it was noticeable by the end. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with Safe Haven, these weren’t your typical starring actors and they stepped up to the challenge of making this bittersweet love story come to life and they were successful. The storyline was fascinating and charged with a lot of heavy topics, which I would not expect for a Spark’s adaptation. 

The Croods: New Age vs. Stone Age

"Da. Da. Daaa!"
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It’s the end of the world as The Croods know it, and they have to survive no matter what it takes. The Croods is a well-done animated movie from DreamWorks that symbolically represented our technological advanced era through the time of cavemen. Directors Kirk De Micco and Chris Sanders, who also both wrote the screenplay, incorporated certain concept like shoes, phones, brains and ideas into the movie through clever imagery by using this imaginary world they created. The graphics were beautifully done and even showed the cross breeds of animals before they hit evolution, which was a cute touch. The world of the pre-historic Croods was wildly imaginative with epic proportions.

 Of course there is some stereotypical scenarios they allows the audience to relate to the movie like for the parents who have to see this film for their children, there is a rebellious teen, Eep played by Emma Stone who wishes to leave the cave and explore. There is also the dreaded mother-in-law played by Cloris Leachman that Grug the patriarch of the Croods (Nicolas Cage) secretly wishes would perish. But then this movie appeals to the younger generation as well with Eep trying to make meaning of her life (like a child going to college) and not living in fear. She wants to make the best of life with what she has, which is very little materialistic value but her family keeps her strong and is a pressing theme throughout the novel.

As much as family is a strong theme and we mostly see wide shots of the family when they are together to give us that ‘family unit’ appeal they introduce ‘opportunities’ and ‘change’ with a light. Eep follows the light (which is a torch of fire) where she meets Guy (played by Ryan Reynolds) and his sidekick and pet Belt (voice by Chris Sanders). Through this slight symbolic gesture, following the light is what allows the Croods to go on this journey with the very knowledgeable Guy, which irritates Grug, who is the protective and  (not all that) knowledgeable father.

Grug and Guy (who also becomes the apple of Eep’s eye) start off with a very rocky relationship. Grug, like any father does not want his wisdom/authority tested even though Guy is usually right and very creative in his ways of surviving. I chuckled a little bit here because it was clearly a metaphor for our lives today. The younger generation (aka Guy) seems to know a lot more about technology nowadays then parents/adults ever could. I still remember when my father got a smart phone for the first time it took him weeks to figure out everything! No adult ever wants to admit a younger person is correct or doing something better then him or her since they aren’t experienced like an adult is. And that is clearly echoed in the film.

The point I see here is we are at that time where being younger is an advantage because we are quick enough to pick up on the ever changing technologies and forever “chasing the light” as they say in The Croods. We are always striving for something to make it easier to survive. Adults are full of wisdom, we can’t forget Grug saved his family for a long time against beasts and disease but this is the time to let the younger generation lead us into a brighter future and that’s the message that I got out of the movie. Of course, adults have the advantage when it comes to sacrificing certain things in order to survive and with a shocking and emotional twist you see both generations have their advantages, and while the younger generation has the advantage of technology, the older generation has strength and certain wisdoms that come only with age.

I know this critique seems quite deep but overall it is a fun film that makes you laugh, maybe even make you cry and easily connect to whether you are young or old. The directors and screenwriters easily made this idea work together for all generations to watch and enjoy and watch again just to hear the adorable Belt go “Da. Da. Daaaa!”  

Beautiful Creatures-- Not Your Typical Southern Belles/Beaus...

 

"Lena, you're a miracle. Why would you ever want to be normal?"
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Beautiful Creatures, where the Stereotypical South is mixed in with some some magical twists. I give this film a six out of ten. Knowing this movie is based off a young-adult series I’m glad to finally see the supernatural craze in media and movies turn away from vampires, werewolves and shape shifters to people with powers. It brings the term witch, which is usually portrayed negatively in society into a more acceptable and light term called ‘caster’. Set in Gatlin, South Carolina a small town full of overly zealous Christians and smothering rules like banning books.

            As most young-adults novels go there is the main character Ethan Wate, (Alden Ehrenreich) a young, independent free thinker who can’t wait venture past the town border to college and escapes the mediocrity of his small town by reading every banned book he can get his hands on, including Kurt Vonnegut and Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead, which shows the power of knowledge can lead anyone to see the world beyond what we believe it to be.

            His obstacle to obtaining that freedom is the fascination with the new girl in town, Lena Duchannes (Alice Englert) who’s living with her uncle and the town’s shut in, Macon Ravenwood (Jeremy Irons).  With almost laughable southern accents and typical hatred for the ‘outsider’ everyone in the town is ready to kick Lena out for being associated with Macon, who they believe is a devil worshiper. To further the plot along strange things with the weather and at school happen once Lena arrives and its Ethan’s curiosity of this mysterious girl that propels you into this life of danger, secrets and life changing decisions. Basically, every teen goes through that awkward stage of trying to figure out who they are but this book series made into movie takes it to the supernatural level.

            The acting was well done, I really enjoyed the main characters and their interactions, the chemistry was there and the build up on the relationship between Lena and Ethan is just right, especially when she exposes her world to him and all the secrets it entails. The scenes that were centered around magic and powers were done tastefully and not as overly stereotypical like a Harry Potter movie with wands and such. Power comes from within the person and their energy of anger, stress, or grief, etc. and causes a reaction and it is a refreshing change in scenery regarding magic in storylines.

            The storyline starts off innocent enough but there are enough twists near the second half of the film to keep you intrigued and wondering what will the end result be and it even shocked me! What bothered me the most was the editing. One moment you can be in the library with Ethan and Lena and the next they are walking away from her car in the middle of the road fighting. It took me out of the moment and that wasn’t the first time I noticed it throughout the film, at least three times. As much as the editing could have been sharper overall the screenplay writer and director Richard LaGravenese did a great job making this magical teen novel come to life. 

Identity Thief--Cheesy, funny and somehow emotion stirring..

"That's not tricks, that's you."
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I give this movie a six out of ten. It was cute film, plot was very easy to follow and the characters were very dynamic and worked incredibly well together. Jason Bateman plays Sandy Patterson, a middle-class, overworked and underappreciated businessman working hard and tirelessly for his two daughters and wife Trish (Amanda Peet), who has another child on the way. You can tell his character is a stickler with money by the way he goes over his monthly bills with his wife and is in charge of the accounts at his bank firm. Also, with having a name like Sandy, people take advantage of him and think he’s weak because of his feminine name.

            The bank life is not so sweet when Sandy finds out his boss is making way more money then he should while none of the middlemen are receiving any bonuses at all. That causes a little revolt in the office and Sandy is one of the few people in the firm to leave and start a new firm somewhere else with a much larger salary. And this is when Sandy’s life goes off the deep end.

            Diana (played by Melissa McCarthy) tricks Sandy into giving his information by pretending she spotted unusual charges on his card, which starts off the real identity theft. To show she is a real pro at the identity theft life, she is shown coming out of the shower as the new credit cards are being made on her home credit card making machine and has IDs drying on a clothes line. It’s her causal nature that shows she doesn’t care who she is hurting as long as she gets what she wants. She believes she can buy happiness. When she spends over two-thousand dollars worth of drinks at the bar buying everyone drinks and becomes too intoxicated to stand, the bartender kicks her out and reminds her, these people aren’t her friends. They just like her because she is buying them drinks. “People like you don’t have friends.” Which cuts her to the core.

            You can tell behind her bubbly and colorful exterior there is a real deep and hurtful meaning to her behavior but it didn’t stop me from not liking her at all in the beginning of the film. Since we saw how Sandy struggles at home with the bills and raising children and being underappreciated at work you want everything to work out in his favor. To see this woman waste away money made me so mad! You wish she were doing it to Sandy’s irresponsible boss, Harold Cornish (played by Jon Favreau).

            When Sandy and Diana get together in the film (which I wont ruin for you) you are cheering for Sandy 100%. I hated Diana and I didn’t understand why she was always spinning stories and creating lie after lie. You would assume she would come clean but she always finds a way to try and run from Sandy, and symbolically run from her past, her problems and her reasoning to why she’s a thief. But when this couple tries to kill her for selling bad credit cards then the movie takes another turn for the worse and now innocent Sandy is pulled into her lifestyle and goes on a ride of his lifetime.

 As the movie progresses I became less angry at Diana as I started to pick up on the hints the director, Seth Gordon had intentionally left for the audience to find for themselves. Like her easiness to becoming a new ‘person’ in every situation they faced and her breakdown in the car when she hears Sandy’s children on the phone. I started to care for her more, just as Sandy Patterson does too. He had no intention of becoming friends with her but through some clever writing (thank you Craig Mazin) and directing, this film comes together and puts all the pieces together to why such an odd couple of criminal and victim could indeed become friends for life. There are more gripping and emotional elements attached to this movie, but it’s for me to know and you to go find out!